Evanescence, Nike and my walk

Don't cry to me.
If you loved me,
You would be here with me.
You want me,
Come find me.
Make up your mind.

Reflecting over the last week on the "parable" of the Sheep and the Goats in Matthew 25:31-46. I was struck again by how important actions are. Christ doesn't separate the sheep and the goats by their doctrinal confessions. It is by their actions toward other people that is the separator between the evil and the righteous. While I am not advocating salvation by works, it does make us consider that our actions are the natural result of our salvation through faith, so if we have no works, we must question our faith. If we're believers, we should "just do it."

James sheds light on this as well, pointing out that the demons are fully aware of who God is. Why do we feel like our well defined doctrines are so wonderful? Not to minimize doctrine (I've spent the last two years studying it) but it's worthless without a life that reflects it. Ever wonder why people are turned off by Christians? It's because we're hypocrites. If we practiced what we've preached, people would love to listen, because they could tell that we care and that we've got our lives in order, something that the world rarely sees.

If we really cared about Christ, we would seek Him all the time, with both our actions and our thoughts. Instead, we waffle back and forth between acting like Christ-followers and acting like idiots. We come blubbering back to Him every time we've messed up our lives again, rather than walking with Him, and keeping our lives straight in His presence. It's a bad habit, and it demonstrates a lack of faith.